Unit power plant



March 15, 1949. K. R. STEARNS UNIT POWER PLANT 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 9, 1946 INVENTOR KENNETH R. STEARNs WITNESSES:

ATTORNEY March 15, 1949. K. R. STEARNS UNIT POWER PLANT 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 9, 1946 INVENTOR KENNETH R. 8m

ATTORNEY March 15, 1949. K. R. STEARNS 2,464,357

UNIT POWER PLANT Filed Nov. 9, 1946 I 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 WITNESSES: INVENTOR v0v W. KENNETH R. STEARNS fiAi W161 ATTORNEY March 15, 1949. Q STEARNS UNIT POWER PLANT 4 Sh eetsSheet 4 Filed Nov. 9, 1946 STEARNs BY R, @I

lNVENTdR KENNETH ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 15, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE UNIT POWER PLANT Kenneth R. Stearns, Springfield, Pa, assignor to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, 9a., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application November 9, 1946, Serial No. 708,880

3 Claims.

The invention relates to a power plant having a turbine driving a generator and exhausting to a condenser and has for an object to provide such apparatus embodied as a unitary or package plant wherein the condenser supports the turbine and the generator and is supported by the foundation in such manner that the turbine and condenser are free to expand and contract with the turbine axis held vertically and horizontally and without loading the foundationv A further object is to provide a condenser supported from the foundation by web plates arranged to flex to accommodate for expansion and contraction of the condenser structure to avoid any substantial loading of the foundation on account thereof.

A further object of the invention is to provide a horizontal condenser aggregate including a condenser and girder structures with means for supporting a turbine and a generator above the condenser by columns whose lower ends bear on and are connected to the girder structures and whose upper ends support and are connected to the generator and to the exhaust end of the turbine and with vertical means for supporting the girder structures from the foundation so that the aggregate may expand and contract without imposing any substantial load on account thereof on the foundation.

The foregoing and other objects are effected by the invention as will be apparent from the fol lowing description and claims taken connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the unitary power plant;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section along the line IIL-III of Fig. 1;

Fig. i is an end elevation of the plant as viewed from the turbine end; and

Fig. 5 is a section taken on the line V--V of Fig. 1.

In the drawing, there is shown a unitary power plant comprising a horizontal condenser aggregate, at Iii, including a condenser ll girder structures !2 unitary with the latter at the sides thereof. The aggregate carries the axiallyaligned turbine Hi and generator Hi thereabcve and its side girder structures are supported by foundation piers it. The turbine has an exhaust nozzle I? from which exhaust steam flows through the inlet opening it into the condenser.

The condenser shell 20 includes a concave bottom wall 25, ertical side walls a horizontal top wall 23, and end walls 24. The top wall 23 is provided with said inlet opening it.

The girder structures l2 include lower flanges 25 and web portions, comprised by the adjacent side walls 22. For the length of the turbine, the girder structures are of braced channel form, the top plate overhanging and being joined to the side wall Webs 9 to provide upper flanges 26; and. for the length of the generator, the girder structures are of angle form, defined by the webs and the lower flanges Z5 and are reinforced by structures forming the generator air cooling passages, such structures comprising lower, upper, and end plates 28, 29 and 3!), respectively, strut plates 35 supporting the lower plates 28 on the lower flanges 25, the ductdividing plates 32 stiffening the lower plates 23 to function as stiffened elements of the side condenser girders, and the end plates joining the upper and lower plates.

The generator is supported above the condenser on the top plates 25 and the load of the latter is transmitted through columns 33 whose upper ends are connected to the upper plates and whose lower ends are connected to the stiiiened lower plates forming components of the condenser integral side girders. As the columns are free to flux laterally and as the rectangular structures formed by the plates 28, 25! and 39 are not stiffened diagonally, such structures are capable of deformation to the extent required to accommodate for relative expansion and contraction of the generator, turbine and condenser, the upper plates remaining fixed relative to the generator and moving relative to the lower plates 28 to the extent required for such accommodation and the columns 33 carrying the weight of the generator directly on the condenser side girder plates 23.

The exhaust end of the turbine casing is car ried by columns 34 whose lower ends bear on and are connected to the girder structures and whose upper ends carry and are connected to the turbine casing. The inlet end. of the turbine casing has feet 35 which bear on abutments 36 carried by the bearing pedestal Bl. The turbine casing is connected to the bearing pedestal by the vertically flexible tie plate and the pedestal is supported from the condenser by plates 39 and to extending in planes normal to the turbine axis and are therefore arranged to provide axial flexibility.

The exhaust end of the turbine is held by the columns 34 and by the expansion joint, at 42, connecting the turbine exhaust nozzle I? to the condenser, the expansion joint including a diaphragm. 33 extending in a horizontal plane parallel to the turbine axis, the diaphragm providing flexibility in the direction of length of the nozzle and stiffness against lateral movement of the latter. While the columns carry the weight of turbine, flex to accommodate radial expansion, and take the turbine reaction torque, the horizontal stillness of the diaphragm opposes axial and lateral movements of the exhaust end of the turbine. At the inlet end, the plates 39 and 4t confine the turbine axis against transverse movement 50 that it is held vertically and horizontally While flexibility thereof provides for expansion and contraction axially.

In service, the condenser may be subject to unusual temperature conditions, as would be the case when starting before the vacuum is built up or When running noncondensing in the event of loss of vacuum. Under these unusual conditions, the condenser temperature n be of the order of 212 or more and the increase from normal temperature would cause the condenser and girder structures to expand. Therefore, the girder structures are supported by means accommodating for expansion while avoiding transverse and lengthwise displacements of the structure t "-131 as loading of the foundation on account thereof to any substantial extent. lhis result is secured, for example, by plates i l con-- nected at their upper ends to the girder structures 52, at their lower ends to the foundation piers ill, and having their webs arranged normal to radii from a suitable vertical of the condenser and girder structure and which are, therefore, flexible in the direction of such radii. While the vertical axis may be at any suitable place n the projection of the condenser bounded me supporting plates, it is shown the vertical plane of the condenser center line and of the turbine axis and, more particularly, at the center of the exhaust inlet.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that I have devised a unitary power plant comprising a condenser aggregate carrying a turbine and an aligned generator driven thereby and comprising a condenser and unitary side girders and wherein the latter are supported from the foundation in such manner and the turbine and generator are carried by the condenser aggregate so that expansion and contraction of the aggregate may take place Without any effort being exerted on either the turbine or the generator, with the result that expansion, incident to going from condensing to noncondensing operation or when starting up, and contraction, incident to going from noncondensing to condensing operation, may take place without disturbing either the turhne or the generator. As the vertical. plates sup porting the side girders from the foundation are arranged normally with respect to radii from a common center, such plates restrict m ver.. ent of the condenser aggregate to directions which are radial to the common center, in consequence of which the aggregate may expand and contract longitudinally and transversely Without movement thereof bodily, whereby, with the vertical columns carrying the generator and the turbine capable of lateral flexibility and the plates 39 and capable of axial flexibility, transverse and longitudinal expansion and contraction of the aggregate take place without disturbing either the turbine or the generator. The elastic plates t l protect both the condenser and the foundation from the very large horizontal loads radial to the center of support which would result from an attempt to oppose the thermal expansion of the condenser by rigid supports. Therefore, these plates operate to avoid the manufacturing cost, operating uncertainty and maintenance, of lubricated slides, which would otherwise have to be used.

While I have shown the invention in but one form, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof.

What is claimed is:

' 1. In a power plant having a foundation and wherein a horizontal turbine drives an axiallyaligned horizontal generator, a horizontal condenser aggregate including a condenser for steam exhausting from the turbine and girder structures unitary with the condenser at the sides thereof, means for sup-porting the turbine and the generator by and above the aggregate and including tur inc-supporting and generator-supporting columns whose lower ends are connected to and bear on the girder structures, and vertical plates having their upper ends connected to the girder structures and their lower ends connected to the foundation, said plates having their webs arr nged normally with respect to radii to a single vertical axis.

2. In a power plant having a foundation and wherein a horizontal turbine drives an axiallyaligned generator, a horizontal condenser, means for supporting the turbine on the condenser so that the turbine and condenser are free to expand and contract axially relative to each other and so that the turbine axis is held vertically and horizontally irrespective of turbine or condenser expansion contraction, and means for supporting the condenser on the foundation to avoid loading of the latter due to expansion and contraction of the condenser, the last-named means including vertical plates having their upper ends connected to the condenser and having their lower ends connected to the foundation, said plates having their planes arranged normally with respect to radii from a single vertical axis within the vertical projected area of the condenser bounded by the plates.

3. In a power plant having a foundation and wherein a horizontal turbine drives an axiallyaligned generator, a horizontal condenser having inlet opening for exhaust steam; means for supporting the turbine on the condenser so that steam exhausting from the turbine flows through the inlet opening into the condenser, so that the turbine and condenser are free to expand and contract axially relative to each other, and so that the turbine axis is held vertically and horizontally irrespective of turbine or condenser expansion and contraction; and means for support ing the condenser on the foundation to avoid loading of the latter due to expansion and contraction of the condenser; the last-named means including vertical plates having their upper ends connected to the condenser and having their lowr ends connected to the foundation; said plates having their planes arranged normally with respect to radii from a single vertical axis passing through the center of the condenser exhaust steam inlet opening.

KENNETH R. STEARNS.

ClES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

Number Name Date 1,066,209 Ljungstrom July 1, 1913 1,156,627 Rice Oct. 1 1915 1,491,423 Rice Apr. 22, 1924 1,830,185 Bancel Nov. 3, 1931 1,969,695 Hendricks Aug. 7., 1934 2,057,561 Dickenson Oct. 13, 1936 2,119,688 Short et al 1 June 7, 1938 

